You can look at the exact same house. Literally a 100 year old house and in major metros the price inflation will be right in line with the rest of the market and out of reach of median incomes. In some cases these are inflated even more on a price per square foot basis due to larger lots and closer proximity to city center. Older, smaller outdated homes are not cheaper unless they are falling apart in which case you just end up paying the same amount on the backend repairs anyway.